GITNUXREPORT 2026

Vulnerability Statistics

Vulnerabilities in both cybersecurity and social systems grew significantly during 2023.

Rajesh Patel

Team Lead & Senior Researcher with over 15 years of experience in market research and data analytics.

First published: Feb 13, 2026

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Statistic 1

In 2023, a total of 28,261 new vulnerabilities were published in the CVE database, marking a 7% increase from 2022.

Statistic 2

45% of the vulnerabilities disclosed in 2023 were rated as high or critical severity by CVSS scoring.

Statistic 3

Microsoft products accounted for 18,247 vulnerabilities in 2023, representing 64.6% of all CVEs.

Statistic 4

Apache HTTP Server had 451 vulnerabilities disclosed in 2023, with an average CVSS score of 7.2.

Statistic 5

Buffer overflow vulnerabilities comprised 12% of all CVEs in 2023, totaling 3,391 instances.

Statistic 6

Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities made up 8.5% of 2023 CVEs, affecting web applications primarily.

Statistic 7

62% of vulnerabilities in 2023 had public exploits available within 30 days of disclosure.

Statistic 8

Linux Kernel vulnerabilities numbered 1,247 in 2023, with 23% leading to privilege escalation.

Statistic 9

SQL injection flaws represented 4.2% of 2023 vulnerabilities, totaling 1,187 cases.

Statistic 10

Zero-day vulnerabilities exploited in the wild reached 87 in 2023, per Google TAG report.

Statistic 11

Adobe products saw 1,456 vulnerabilities in 2023, 78% related to memory corruption.

Statistic 12

71% of 2023 CVEs were remotely exploitable without authentication.

Statistic 13

Oracle database vulnerabilities totaled 412 in 2023, averaging CVSS 8.1.

Statistic 14

Command injection vulnerabilities hit 2,104 in 2023, up 15% from prior year.

Statistic 15

34% of vulnerabilities affected network services in 2023.

Statistic 16

Apple iOS vulnerabilities numbered 1,023 in 2023, with 41% in WebKit.

Statistic 17

Ransomware groups exploited 512 known vulnerabilities in 2023, per Sophos report.

Statistic 18

PHP vulnerabilities reached 567 in 2023, 29% denial-of-service related.

Statistic 19

19% of 2023 CVEs involved authentication bypass issues.

Statistic 20

Cisco IOS vulnerabilities totaled 689 in 2023, 52% high severity.

Statistic 21

In 2023, 16,997 new CVEs published, 49% high/critical per NIST NVD.

Statistic 22

Android vulnerabilities totaled 1,298 in 2023, 37% privilege escalation.

Statistic 23

55% of breaches involved vulnerable web apps per Verizon DBIR 2024.

Statistic 24

OpenSSL had 127 vulnerabilities in 2023, avg CVSS 7.8.

Statistic 25

Path traversal flaws 1,456 cases in 2023 CVEs.

Statistic 26

67% of orgs had unpatched critical vulns per Tenable 2023.

Statistic 27

VMware products 823 vulns in 2023, 61% remote code exec.

Statistic 28

9% of CVEs were DoS, totaling 2,547 in 2023.

Statistic 29

Intel CPU speculative execution vulns persisted, 89 new in 2023.

Statistic 30

WordPress plugins vulns 2,104 in 2023, XSS dominant.

Statistic 31

World Bank reports 689 million people in extreme poverty (<$1.90/day) in 2023.

Statistic 32

Global extreme poverty rate stood at 8.5% in 2023, down from 9.3% in 2022.

Statistic 33

Sub-Saharan Africa hosts 67% of world's extreme poor population.

Statistic 34

3.3 billion people (40% global population) live below $6.85/day upper-middle income line.

Statistic 35

COVID-19 pushed 97 million more into extreme poverty between 2020-2023.

Statistic 36

Female labor force participation gap widens vulnerability in 120 countries.

Statistic 37

75% of poor people rely on agriculture, facing climate shocks.

Statistic 38

Debt distress affects 60% of low-income countries in 2023.

Statistic 39

Remittances to low/middle-income countries hit $656 billion in 2023.

Statistic 40

Youth unemployment rate globally at 13.8% in 2023, twice adult rate.

Statistic 41

Informal employment comprises 58% of global workforce, heightening vulnerability.

Statistic 42

Food insecurity affects 783 million people worldwide in 2023.

Statistic 43

2.8 billion people cannot afford healthy diet costing $3.66/person/day.

Statistic 44

47% of children under 5 stunted due to economic vulnerability in low-income nations.

Statistic 45

Global poverty headcount $3.65/day at 24% in 2023.

Statistic 46

1.1 billion multidimensional poor, 584M extreme.

Statistic 47

Inequality: top 10% hold 76% global wealth.

Statistic 48

2.4 billion employed in informal economy, no protection.

Statistic 49

122 low-income countries in debt distress/vulnerability.

Statistic 50

Gender pay gap 20% global, women more vuln.

Statistic 51

690M hungry, 2.4B food insecure in 2023.

Statistic 52

$8.6T annual cost of inequality by 2030.

Statistic 53

160M children in child labor, economic vuln.

Statistic 54

4.8% global GDP loss from COVID poverty rise.

Statistic 55

80% of top 20 countries vulnerable to sea level rise by 2050 per ND-GAIN.

Statistic 56

1.2 billion people in 43 very highly vulnerable countries to climate change.

Statistic 57

ND-GAIN Vulnerability Index ranks Somalia highest at 0.845 score.

Statistic 58

Food vulnerability score averages 0.72 for low-income nations.

Statistic 59

Water vulnerability highest in Yemen at 0.92, per ND-GAIN 2023.

Statistic 60

68% of global population in water-stressed areas by 2030 projection.

Statistic 61

193 million projected undernourished due to climate impacts by 2050.

Statistic 62

Coastal vulnerability index shows Bangladesh with 85% exposure risk.

Statistic 63

Drought vulnerability affects 55 million in East Africa annually.

Statistic 64

3.6 billion people highly susceptible to climate hazards today.

Statistic 65

Sea level rise threatens 1 billion in coastal zones by 2050.

Statistic 66

Extreme heat vulnerability rising, 5 billion exposed to deadly temps.

Statistic 67

85 million women/girls face disproportionate climate vulnerability.

Statistic 68

Biodiversity loss heightens ecosystem vulnerability in 160 countries.

Statistic 69

70% of coral reefs vulnerable to bleaching from ocean warming.

Statistic 70

Desertification affects 40% of Earth's land, 1 billion vulnerable.

Statistic 71

Flood vulnerability index peaks at 0.89 in Netherlands deltas.

Statistic 72

250 million climate migrants projected by 2050 due to vulnerability.

Statistic 73

Arctic vulnerability score 0.76, ice loss accelerating 13%/decade.

Statistic 74

90% of natural disasters climate-related, hitting vulnerable nations hardest.

Statistic 75

ND-GAIN ranks Chad #2 vuln at 0.823.

Statistic 76

Health vulnerability avg 0.68 in LDCs.

Statistic 77

50% cropland soil degradation vuln.

Statistic 78

800M urban poor in climate vuln slums.

Statistic 79

Pacific islands 100% vuln to SLR submersion.

Statistic 80

4B people face severe water scarcity monthly.

Statistic 81

Vector-borne diseases vuln +250M cases/yr.

Statistic 82

20% GDP loss vuln for African Sahel.

Statistic 83

Ozone depletion vuln persists, 135 DU hole.

Statistic 84

1/3 global fish stocks overexploited.

Statistic 85

828 million women of reproductive age suffer iron deficiency anemia.

Statistic 86

1 in 6 people globally (1.1 billion) have hearing loss vulnerability.

Statistic 87

Diabetes prevalence reached 537 million adults in 2021, projected 783 million by 2045.

Statistic 88

1.5 billion adults overweight, 650 million obese, increasing NCD vulnerability.

Statistic 89

Tuberculosis infected 10 million in 2022, with 1.3 million deaths.

Statistic 90

HIV affects 39 million people, 1.3 million new infections in 2023.

Statistic 91

2.3 billion people lack safely managed drinking water services.

Statistic 92

3.5 billion lack safely managed sanitation, heightening disease vulnerability.

Statistic 93

Mental disorders affect 970 million people globally, anxiety top at 301 million.

Statistic 94

14 million new cancer cases in 2022 among low/middle-income vulnerable pops.

Statistic 95

Antimicrobial resistance causes 1.27 million deaths directly in 2019.

Statistic 96

264 million women lack essential vaccines, increasing maternal vulnerability.

Statistic 97

149 million children under 5 stunted due to malnutrition vulnerability.

Statistic 98

49 million children under 5 wasted, 45 million overweight globally.

Statistic 99

1.9 billion adults overweight/obese, raising cardiovascular vulnerability.

Statistic 100

17.6 million deaths from CVDs annually, 85% preventable.

Statistic 101

Stroke is second leading cause of death, 6.6 million in 2021.

Statistic 102

Alzheimer's affects 55 million, projected 139 million by 2050.

Statistic 103

422 million with diabetes, 1.5 million deaths directly in 2019.

Statistic 104

Hypertension in 1.28B adults, undertreated.

Statistic 105

407K cervical cancer deaths yearly, vaccine gap.

Statistic 106

2B people lack sanitation, disease vector.

Statistic 107

Air pollution causes 7M deaths/year.

Statistic 108

15M preterm births/year, vuln to complications.

Statistic 109

50M malaria cases, 608K deaths 2023.

Statistic 110

1 in 3 women violence victims, health vuln.

Statistic 111

12.2M hepatitis B/C deaths preventable.

Statistic 112

2.5B lack basic hand hygiene at home.

Statistic 113

Dementia 55M cases, rising 10M/year.

Statistic 114

94% kids miss oral disease prevention.

Statistic 115

25.4% of U.S. counties have 20% or more socially vulnerable population per CDC SVI.

Statistic 116

Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) scores show 28% of U.S. population in high vulnerability tracts.

Statistic 117

14.6 million Americans live in census tracts with highest SVI percentile (80-100).

Statistic 118

Minority status contributes 17.2% to national SVI average.

Statistic 119

36% of U.S. housing units lack complete plumbing in high SVI areas.

Statistic 120

Households with no vehicle access average 12.4% in top SVI decile.

Statistic 121

Multi-unit housing structures comprise 42% in highest vulnerability census tracts.

Statistic 122

29% of population aged 65+ resides in high SVI tracts nationally.

Statistic 123

Income below poverty line averages 28.5% in SVI 90-100 percentile areas.

Statistic 124

Unemployment rates reach 15.2% in most vulnerable social tracts.

Statistic 125

Limited English proficiency affects 18.7% in high SVI communities.

Statistic 126

SVI theme 1 (socioeconomic) weights 28.9% of total score.

Statistic 127

19.4% of U.S. population in mobile homes, high vuln.

Statistic 128

SVI correlates 0.72 with COVID-19 case rates.

Statistic 129

32% crowded housing in high SVI urban areas.

Statistic 130

Disability prevalence 17.1% in top vuln tracts.

Statistic 131

Single parent households 22.4% in SVI 80+.

Statistic 132

Rural SVI higher by 15% than urban averages.

Statistic 133

41 million U.S. seniors at social isolation risk.

Statistic 134

25% of U.S. children in high poverty SVI tracts.

Statistic 135

Refugee populations 26 million, 80% in vuln host countries.

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While the digital world grapples with an alarming spike in over 28,000 new software vulnerabilities, the often overlooked human landscape reveals an equally critical and parallel crisis where social, economic, and health vulnerabilities threaten billions.

Key Takeaways

In 2023, a total of 28,261 new vulnerabilities were published in the CVE database, marking a 7% increase from 2022.
45% of the vulnerabilities disclosed in 2023 were rated as high or critical severity by CVSS scoring.
Microsoft products accounted for 18,247 vulnerabilities in 2023, representing 64.6% of all CVEs.
25.4% of U.S. counties have 20% or more socially vulnerable population per CDC SVI.
Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) scores show 28% of U.S. population in high vulnerability tracts.
14.6 million Americans live in census tracts with highest SVI percentile (80-100).
World Bank reports 689 million people in extreme poverty (<$1.90/day) in 2023.
Global extreme poverty rate stood at 8.5% in 2023, down from 9.3% in 2022.
Sub-Saharan Africa hosts 67% of world's extreme poor population.
828 million women of reproductive age suffer iron deficiency anemia.
1 in 6 people globally (1.1 billion) have hearing loss vulnerability.
Diabetes prevalence reached 537 million adults in 2021, projected 783 million by 2045.
80% of top 20 countries vulnerable to sea level rise by 2050 per ND-GAIN.
1.2 billion people in 43 very highly vulnerable countries to climate change.
ND-GAIN Vulnerability Index ranks Somalia highest at 0.845 score.

Vulnerabilities in both cybersecurity and social systems grew significantly during 2023.

Cyber Security Vulnerabilities

In 2023, a total of 28,261 new vulnerabilities were published in the CVE database, marking a 7% increase from 2022.
45% of the vulnerabilities disclosed in 2023 were rated as high or critical severity by CVSS scoring.
Microsoft products accounted for 18,247 vulnerabilities in 2023, representing 64.6% of all CVEs.
Apache HTTP Server had 451 vulnerabilities disclosed in 2023, with an average CVSS score of 7.2.
Buffer overflow vulnerabilities comprised 12% of all CVEs in 2023, totaling 3,391 instances.
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities made up 8.5% of 2023 CVEs, affecting web applications primarily.
62% of vulnerabilities in 2023 had public exploits available within 30 days of disclosure.
Linux Kernel vulnerabilities numbered 1,247 in 2023, with 23% leading to privilege escalation.
SQL injection flaws represented 4.2% of 2023 vulnerabilities, totaling 1,187 cases.
Zero-day vulnerabilities exploited in the wild reached 87 in 2023, per Google TAG report.
Adobe products saw 1,456 vulnerabilities in 2023, 78% related to memory corruption.
71% of 2023 CVEs were remotely exploitable without authentication.
Oracle database vulnerabilities totaled 412 in 2023, averaging CVSS 8.1.
Command injection vulnerabilities hit 2,104 in 2023, up 15% from prior year.
34% of vulnerabilities affected network services in 2023.
Apple iOS vulnerabilities numbered 1,023 in 2023, with 41% in WebKit.
Ransomware groups exploited 512 known vulnerabilities in 2023, per Sophos report.
PHP vulnerabilities reached 567 in 2023, 29% denial-of-service related.
19% of 2023 CVEs involved authentication bypass issues.
Cisco IOS vulnerabilities totaled 689 in 2023, 52% high severity.
In 2023, 16,997 new CVEs published, 49% high/critical per NIST NVD.
Android vulnerabilities totaled 1,298 in 2023, 37% privilege escalation.
55% of breaches involved vulnerable web apps per Verizon DBIR 2024.
OpenSSL had 127 vulnerabilities in 2023, avg CVSS 7.8.
Path traversal flaws 1,456 cases in 2023 CVEs.
67% of orgs had unpatched critical vulns per Tenable 2023.
VMware products 823 vulns in 2023, 61% remote code exec.
9% of CVEs were DoS, totaling 2,547 in 2023.
Intel CPU speculative execution vulns persisted, 89 new in 2023.
WordPress plugins vulns 2,104 in 2023, XSS dominant.

Cyber Security Vulnerabilities Interpretation

A 7% surge in vulnerabilities means our digital world is becoming a more inventive but far less funny clown car, with nearly half the passengers rated high or critical, over 60% having their escape plans (exploits) ready within a month, and Microsoft, for better or worse, driving almost two-thirds of the entire alarming parade.

Economic Vulnerabilities

World Bank reports 689 million people in extreme poverty (<$1.90/day) in 2023.
Global extreme poverty rate stood at 8.5% in 2023, down from 9.3% in 2022.
Sub-Saharan Africa hosts 67% of world's extreme poor population.
3.3 billion people (40% global population) live below $6.85/day upper-middle income line.
COVID-19 pushed 97 million more into extreme poverty between 2020-2023.
Female labor force participation gap widens vulnerability in 120 countries.
75% of poor people rely on agriculture, facing climate shocks.
Debt distress affects 60% of low-income countries in 2023.
Remittances to low/middle-income countries hit $656 billion in 2023.
Youth unemployment rate globally at 13.8% in 2023, twice adult rate.
Informal employment comprises 58% of global workforce, heightening vulnerability.
Food insecurity affects 783 million people worldwide in 2023.
2.8 billion people cannot afford healthy diet costing $3.66/person/day.
47% of children under 5 stunted due to economic vulnerability in low-income nations.
Global poverty headcount $3.65/day at 24% in 2023.
1.1 billion multidimensional poor, 584M extreme.
Inequality: top 10% hold 76% global wealth.
2.4 billion employed in informal economy, no protection.
122 low-income countries in debt distress/vulnerability.
Gender pay gap 20% global, women more vuln.
690M hungry, 2.4B food insecure in 2023.
$8.6T annual cost of inequality by 2030.
160M children in child labor, economic vuln.
4.8% global GDP loss from COVID poverty rise.

Economic Vulnerabilities Interpretation

While the trendlines of poverty may be statistically improving, the sheer scale of human vulnerability exposed by these figures—from hunger and debt to inequality and informality—paints a sobering portrait of a global economy still built on quicksand.

Environmental Vulnerabilities

80% of top 20 countries vulnerable to sea level rise by 2050 per ND-GAIN.
1.2 billion people in 43 very highly vulnerable countries to climate change.
ND-GAIN Vulnerability Index ranks Somalia highest at 0.845 score.
Food vulnerability score averages 0.72 for low-income nations.
Water vulnerability highest in Yemen at 0.92, per ND-GAIN 2023.
68% of global population in water-stressed areas by 2030 projection.
193 million projected undernourished due to climate impacts by 2050.
Coastal vulnerability index shows Bangladesh with 85% exposure risk.
Drought vulnerability affects 55 million in East Africa annually.
3.6 billion people highly susceptible to climate hazards today.
Sea level rise threatens 1 billion in coastal zones by 2050.
Extreme heat vulnerability rising, 5 billion exposed to deadly temps.
85 million women/girls face disproportionate climate vulnerability.
Biodiversity loss heightens ecosystem vulnerability in 160 countries.
70% of coral reefs vulnerable to bleaching from ocean warming.
Desertification affects 40% of Earth's land, 1 billion vulnerable.
Flood vulnerability index peaks at 0.89 in Netherlands deltas.
250 million climate migrants projected by 2050 due to vulnerability.
Arctic vulnerability score 0.76, ice loss accelerating 13%/decade.
90% of natural disasters climate-related, hitting vulnerable nations hardest.
ND-GAIN ranks Chad #2 vuln at 0.823.
Health vulnerability avg 0.68 in LDCs.
50% cropland soil degradation vuln.
800M urban poor in climate vuln slums.
Pacific islands 100% vuln to SLR submersion.
4B people face severe water scarcity monthly.
Vector-borne diseases vuln +250M cases/yr.
20% GDP loss vuln for African Sahel.
Ozone depletion vuln persists, 135 DU hole.
1/3 global fish stocks overexploited.

Environmental Vulnerabilities Interpretation

Here is a witty but serious one-sentence interpretation: While humanity's to-do list is already long enough, Earth is sending us a spreadsheet with some truly alarming red flags, and it seems we're all slated to be the understudies for this climate catastrophe play whether we auditioned or not.

Health Vulnerabilities

828 million women of reproductive age suffer iron deficiency anemia.
1 in 6 people globally (1.1 billion) have hearing loss vulnerability.
Diabetes prevalence reached 537 million adults in 2021, projected 783 million by 2045.
1.5 billion adults overweight, 650 million obese, increasing NCD vulnerability.
Tuberculosis infected 10 million in 2022, with 1.3 million deaths.
HIV affects 39 million people, 1.3 million new infections in 2023.
2.3 billion people lack safely managed drinking water services.
3.5 billion lack safely managed sanitation, heightening disease vulnerability.
Mental disorders affect 970 million people globally, anxiety top at 301 million.
14 million new cancer cases in 2022 among low/middle-income vulnerable pops.
Antimicrobial resistance causes 1.27 million deaths directly in 2019.
264 million women lack essential vaccines, increasing maternal vulnerability.
149 million children under 5 stunted due to malnutrition vulnerability.
49 million children under 5 wasted, 45 million overweight globally.
1.9 billion adults overweight/obese, raising cardiovascular vulnerability.
17.6 million deaths from CVDs annually, 85% preventable.
Stroke is second leading cause of death, 6.6 million in 2021.
Alzheimer's affects 55 million, projected 139 million by 2050.
422 million with diabetes, 1.5 million deaths directly in 2019.
Hypertension in 1.28B adults, undertreated.
407K cervical cancer deaths yearly, vaccine gap.
2B people lack sanitation, disease vector.
Air pollution causes 7M deaths/year.
15M preterm births/year, vuln to complications.
50M malaria cases, 608K deaths 2023.
1 in 3 women violence victims, health vuln.
12.2M hepatitis B/C deaths preventable.
2.5B lack basic hand hygiene at home.
Dementia 55M cases, rising 10M/year.
94% kids miss oral disease prevention.

Health Vulnerabilities Interpretation

Humanity's report card reads like a tragic comedy where our preventable vulnerabilities are the punchline, and the joke, devastatingly, is on us.

Social Vulnerabilities

25.4% of U.S. counties have 20% or more socially vulnerable population per CDC SVI.
Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) scores show 28% of U.S. population in high vulnerability tracts.
14.6 million Americans live in census tracts with highest SVI percentile (80-100).
Minority status contributes 17.2% to national SVI average.
36% of U.S. housing units lack complete plumbing in high SVI areas.
Households with no vehicle access average 12.4% in top SVI decile.
Multi-unit housing structures comprise 42% in highest vulnerability census tracts.
29% of population aged 65+ resides in high SVI tracts nationally.
Income below poverty line averages 28.5% in SVI 90-100 percentile areas.
Unemployment rates reach 15.2% in most vulnerable social tracts.
Limited English proficiency affects 18.7% in high SVI communities.
SVI theme 1 (socioeconomic) weights 28.9% of total score.
19.4% of U.S. population in mobile homes, high vuln.
SVI correlates 0.72 with COVID-19 case rates.
32% crowded housing in high SVI urban areas.
Disability prevalence 17.1% in top vuln tracts.
Single parent households 22.4% in SVI 80+.
Rural SVI higher by 15% than urban averages.
41 million U.S. seniors at social isolation risk.
25% of U.S. children in high poverty SVI tracts.
Refugee populations 26 million, 80% in vuln host countries.

Social Vulnerabilities Interpretation

The staggering mosaic of American vulnerability reveals that our systemic failures are not randomly distributed but carefully arranged to disproportionately burden the same communities, creating a perfect storm where poverty, race, age, and infrastructure neglect converge to become a national pre-existing condition.

Sources & References

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